Watch what you say online

Following up on my recent post on Commenting Online, the Vancouver Sun reports on the growing trend of legal action against online comments. Seems that just because you are ‘online’ doesn’t mean you can say whatever you want!

Hotels incensed by critical travel reviews have threatened legal action, commenters on a newspaper’s website have found themselves sued, and anonymity is fast-disappearing as a safeguard for loose-lipped and libellous online comments.

“In posting things online, [a lot of people] often have this illusion that they are anonymous,” said Bryan Baynham QC of the commercial litigation group at Harper Grey LLP.